The Publication For Garage Professionals

THE Aylesbury Youth Motoring Project has launched an appeal for cars, bikes and parts for their students to use as learning tools.

The project, which has operated for 15 years with the goal of furthering students struggling at school who have a passion for motoring and engineering, provides the opportunity to go into the garage trade armed with Entry 3 and Level 1 qualifications.

Since the project is self-funded, donated vehicles are the only way to sustain the operation. While cars and bikes are the most common vehicles worked on at the Aylesbury Youth Motoring Project (AYMP), project manager Rob Shirley made it clear that they’ll happily take anything mechanical that can be worked on.

He said: ‘We’re open to donations of anything and everything, whether it starts or doesn’t start, as beggars can’t be choosers! It can be anything from lawnmowers to lorries, providing it’s self-propelled.’

He also spoke of the type of students that take part in qualifications at the AYMP: ‘Our age group is 12 upwards. We’ve built up over 15 years from our early days where, to be honest, we were seen as a bit of a dumping ground for disruptive students.

‘We now deal with everyone and anyone, from youth offenders to children and adults with special needs, to everyday students who want to learn a new skill.’

While they provide early steps into the industry for the young, there is no limit on age at AYRP. Shirley commented: ‘Our oldest person is a 54-year-old named Neil, who has special needs. I’ve been teaching him for 20 years at this project and other similar ones.’